Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Hustlin' Divas (Divas Series #1)

4.39 of 5 stars 4.39 · rating details · 301 ratings · 46 reviews

From the award-winning, national bestselling author ("Desperate Hoodwives") hailed as the Duchess of Street Lit comes a steamy, sexy, gritty tale about Memphis's ride-or-die chicks, who'll do whatever it takes to get what they want.

Paperback, 320 pages

Published November 1st 2010 by Dafina (first published January 1st 2010)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

This book is not yet featured on Listopia. Add this book to your favorite list »

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 631)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Dec 01, 2010 Leona Romich rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Hustlin' Diva's by De'nesha Diamond is set against the backdrop of Memphis,
Tennessee where female gangs run the Mid-South. The Queen G's are the females
that run with the Black Gangster Disciples and the Flowers run with the Vice
Lords. The story centers on the Queen G's and their men, the Black Gangster
Disciples.

Python is the leader of the Black Gangster Disciples and runs his gang with an
iron fist. Ever since he was a youngin' he had a thing for snakes, so most times
you see him he has his...more

like 2 likes · see review

Dec 27, 2011 Gertrude rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: NO ONE

Shelves: e-books, women-writers

There were parts of this story that I found completely ridiculous. Dimaond spent way too much time trying to freak her readers out and not enough time developing good characters. There isn't one positive or grounded male or female character in this book. However, I'm giving it 3 stars because 1) I finished it and 2) I think the sequel will be somewhat better.

In 'Hustlin' Divas,' Diamond tells the story of Profit and Ta'Shara, two lovestruck teens with family ties to two opposing gangs: Profit's...more There were parts of this story that I found completely ridiculous. Dimaond spent way too much time trying to freak her readers out and not enough time developing good characters. There isn't one positive or grounded male or female character in this book. However, I'm giving it 3 stars because 1) I finished it and 2) I think the sequel will be somewhat better.

In 'Hustlin' Divas,' Diamond tells the story of Profit and Ta'Shara, two lovestruck teens with family ties to two opposing gangs: Profit's brother, Fat Ace, is the leader of the Vice Lords and Ta'Shara's sister LaShelle is the Queen Bitch of The Gangster Disciples and wifey of its leader, Python. Fat Ace and Python are sworn enemies, sleeping with the same crooked cop Melanie who tells both men she's pregnant with their child in an effort to get back at Profit for not paying her enough attention and blah blah blah.

Profit and Ta'Shara are determined to see one another no matter what, but somewhere along the line LaShelle's position as Python's main chick is compromised partly because he discovers that LaShelle's sister is "sleeping with the enemy" and begins to question LaShelle's loyalty to him. To "reclaim" her spot as Python's main chick, LaShelle accepts Python's challenge to squash the relationship between her sister and Python. Next thing you know, the book is done.

I mean, it's dumb...really dumb. I absolutely HATE it when urban authors attempt to navigate or tell the story of a police officer. It always fails! Yes, there is no difference between organized crime rings (like gangs and drug dealing operations) and police officers; however, there is a difference in the attitudes between life criminals and corrupt police officers. And 9 times out of 10, these urban lit writers cannot convey that difference in a novel.

There is a scene where Python has a snake eat his cousin. I don't know what that's all about...I didn't know snakes ate people. I didn't know snakes even fed like that...I thought they could eat one big thing like a whole egg and then not eat again for months. Or something like that. But in this novel, snakes eat people.

And finally, the most disturbing aspects of 'Hustlin' Divas' occur in the bizarre sex scenes between Python (who is supposed to be ridiculously ugly, but shockingly well endowed with a split/severed tongue that resembles the tongue of a snake, which he uses often when performing oral sex on one of his many concubines - go figure) and LaShelle, Melanie, and Yolanda. The choking, the beating, the trash bags, etc. are all so pointless. All Diamond managed to do was aggravate me with these nonsensical scenes that failed to reinforce something about each characters' personality that wasn't made obvious in the beginning of the book.

You may want to pass on this unless you want to read this sadomasochistic, urban Romeo & Juliet tale. It's not my style.(less)

like 2 likes · see review

Jan 19, 2011 ☺~Tina~☺ rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: free-read, kindle

I should have waited to read this book. Now I have to sit here fiening until next year, sigh.
Ta'Shara and LeShelle are sister who end up in foster care. Several events lead to Ta'Shara finally ending up with a decent family, doing well in school and finding love among her sisters enemies. LeShelle ends up in a group home then in a gang where she finally lands the leader and move to Queen G status. And she is not giving up her title, not even to save her sister.

It has murder, a racist cop, corr...more

like 1 like · see review

Jan 16, 2011 OOSA rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: january-reads-of-the-month

The Streets Don't Love Nobody,

Violence knows no boundaries. Like many cities across America, the gang life and its mentality has made its way to Memphis,Tennessee . This mentality has affected the lives of many including sisters LeShelle and Ta'Shara. Orphaned at a young age, each sought the security of family from different sources. LeShelle is the head of the Queen G's, the female counterparts to the Black Gangster Disciples. Her boyfriend, Python, is the leader of the Black Gangster Disciples...more The Streets Don't Love Nobody,

Violence knows no boundaries. Like many cities across America, the gang life and its mentality has made its way to Memphis,Tennessee . This mentality has affected the lives of many including sisters LeShelle and Ta'Shara. Orphaned at a young age, each sought the security of family from different sources. LeShelle is the head of the Queen G's, the female counterparts to the Black Gangster Disciples. Her boyfriend, Python, is the leader of the Black Gangster Disciples. Her gang is her family and she will let nothing and no one threaten that bond. Younger sister, Ta'Shara, on the other hand, flourished under the guidance of foster parents. With good grades, she has dreams and they include leaving Memphis and its violence in her rear view. That is until she meets Profitt, a handsome young man who happens to be on the other side of the gang color line. Like Ta'Shara, he's not in a gang. But their blood association makes them gang affiliated whether they like it or not.

Also affected by the mean streets of Memphis is Yolanda. A little slower than the rest, her position on the totem pole is pretty low. Determined to rise within the Queen G's and garner the respect and attention she feels she deserves, Yolanda is working overtime to secure herself a new position, even if it means taking someone else's.

On the other side of the violence with a badge and a gun is Melanie, a cop and young, single mother. The daughter of the police captain, she's spent her career proving herself. But she also spent quite some time trying to fit in, which may come back into play.

There was a lot to like about this book, which is fortunate, because it outweighed what I didn't care for. I'll start with what I didn't like first. The title was misleading and didn't really apply to this story. It's a nice title...for another book with a more fitting storyline. Next, the synopsis gave away a secret that could have been explosive had readers not already been hipped to it. Finally, the author tried a little too hard with making this book hard, street, ghetto or whatever term you want to use. Less is sometimes more and I wished that Diamond had pulled back some. The story was strong enough and would have still worked.

On the plus side, she did many things right: good pacing, interesting characters, and enough drama to keep readers quickly flipping the pages. Diamond weaves a tale of many threads to show the power and consequences of the streets. And she does so in a way that will have readers still thinking about this novel long after they've read the last page. Descriptive, graphic and sometimes disturbing, "Hustlin' Divas" is highly entertaining. While it's not a perfect novel (also see below), Diamond surely delivers the drama, emotion and appeal that many books are lacking.

ALSO, I have to take away for...

Celebrity sightings: 5. Instead of describing some characters, they were simply described as looking like a celebrity. Chilli from TLC, Diahann Carroll, O.J. Simpson, Pam Grier and Laila Ali look-alikes were in this book. And I'd be remiss not to mention the `good Puerto Rican hair' and `Indian' physical attributes associated with beauty.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: ENOUGH with sequels! Like so many books today, there will be a part two, "Street Divas." Give me ONE COMPLETE story.

#Bringing Quality Back#

Reviewed by: Toni

3.75 stars (less)

like 1 like · see review

Feb 14, 2013 Alexis rated it 5 of 5 stars

Wow. I was shocked at how well the book was structured and liked the writing style of it, although it was hood tale. It was like the ultimate ghetto fab version of a Romeo and Juliet story with other great story lines to follow. Every character had a purpose and the flashbacks added to the drama and connected the dots to how each character had history && a past with one another, and future they did or did not know. The author did a great job with creeping me out with Python, I swear I do...more

like · see review

Jan 20, 2011 Carol rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction-novels

OMG! This book was recommended to me from a good friend who is into reading these urban romance novels. I read this book in one sitting seriously.... This book is intense from the storyline, drama, graphic sex,and betrayal. I really enjoyed this book.....

like 2 likes · see review

Jul 04, 2011 June rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: borrowed

Definitely a page turner... I received this as a loan from booklending.com for my kindle on July 3rd and I was all in until I finished it at midnight.
I must admit that street novels are one of my guilty pleasures...
Sometimes it's exciting to escape into a realm beyond ones own reality and this book was exactly that...
Hustlin' Divas was something else! Python and LeShelle are no joke, these two put Bonnie and Clyde to shame with all their shenanigans as Ms.Peaches would say...I felt a little Ro...more

like · see review

Jan 16, 2011 Lesa Jones rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: i-own, read-it

Ok read. Leshelle working hard to be a Queen GD to her man Python his ride and die chick no matter that he has baby moms all over the city and sleeping with everyone she still by his side with her gun at her side even if that means losing her sis TaShara over her man. TaShara is her own person living with her foster parents she wants more with life then her sister LeShelle does she ends up falling for a boy name Profit that happens to be the brother of the VL king Fat Ace but, Profit dont have a...more

like 1 like · see review

Apr 01, 2011 Tawnya rated it 3 of 5 stars

This one was in the new section of my library and I had to pick it up just for the Memphis references. Diiiiiirty! Crazy storyline of a life I will never, nor desire to be a part of, but was compelling to say the least. Drugs, sex, violence-who could ask for more? To me, it read like a script. I can totally see this one being made into a movie, but can't think of who should play Python. Sex scenes (and there were a ton of 'em!) were graphic and violent. Although I felt a little dirty reading thi...more

like · see review

Nov 09, 2012 Athena rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

When I first started Hustlin Divas I felt that there were so many characters and way too much going on. As I continued reading and familiarizing myself with each character's story, I couldn't put the book down. This book kept me on my toes and I developed feelings for each individual character. I loved some of the characters, I hated some of the characters and I wanted to knock some of the character's smooth out, and in my opinion that signifies a good book. There was a twist in the book that I...more

like · see review

Nov 24, 2012 Merary rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: adult, gangsta-shit, black-main-characters, too-many-fucking-curses-fuck, i-can-hear-the-porno-music, damn-book-you-dirty, gah-gave-me-a-heart-attack, action-packed

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. BOOM BOOM! BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG!! SHOOT THEM UP!! GONE WITHIN A BANG!!

This is going to be really difficult to review.
Why?

This is only the second book I have read where "hustlin" is part of the game. The first being The Golden Hustla by Wahida Clark. Gangs I can handle. "Hustlers"? Not so much.
In other words, I know nothing.

With that in mind, I hope this review goes good. *cracks knuckles*
Shall we start? Okay, let's do it.

Hustlin' Divas is set in South Memphis, Tennessee.

Nice, huh? Except t...more

like 1 like · see review

Mar 30, 2011 Nardsbaby Reader rated it 4 of 5 stars

Rivalries,

Memphis is known for Beale Street, the Peabody Hotel and being the home of Elvis Presley. In addition, the front page and nightly news boast of the increasing murders thanks to the gang violence. The Gangster Disciples and the Vice Lords have a long standing feud amongst them. It doesn't help when Ta'Shara, a straight A student and the sister of the Queen G's starts dating Profit, the brother of the King of the Vice Lords. Can the politics die down? Or will Ta'Shara and Profit be force...more

like · see review

Jan 14, 2011 Tia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 3-kindle, afro-american

I loved it! I read it in two days. It was that good. The characters are well developed and your pulled in right from the beginning. I raced right through the last half of the book because the drama really heats up from every page there after. If you enjoy street lit and can deal with the explicit language you will love this one. I agree with the other reviewers....I can't wait for the 2nd book.

like · see review

Feb 19, 2011 Cathy Warner rated it 5 of 5 stars

Is this really how gangstas live? When you think of street gangs and violence you typically think of men. This book will change your whole outlook on gangs and street life. The females go just as hard as the men do! It was full of drama and almost never a dull moment! I cant wait to read Street Divas to see how TaShara and LeShelle's relationship turns out. OMG what is gonna happen between Fat Ace and Python???? READ THIS BOOK!!!!!!

like 2 likes · see review

Feb 11, 2011 Maxine rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book is excellent!!! It is well written and definitely a constant page turner. The storyline and characters captures and keeps your attention. It is full of drama, excitement and a lot of mystery. Hustlin Divas ends with several big cliff hangers and I am anxiously waiting for the next book to see what happens with the characters.

like · see review

Dec 30, 2012 Anita Dawson rated it 3 of 5 stars

Imagine gang life in Memphis, TN. Ride or die chicks are truly something else. My head was spinning with the things that they do to make sure to obtain Queen B status. If you want a different perspective on gang life, this is the one for you. But if you don't like to see women disrespecting themselves, close the book.

like · see review

Jul 14, 2012 Terri rated it 5 of 5 stars

this is the best book ive read in a long time. it had me from the start and i love that. i dont like having to read and read to finally get interested. this is the first book i read by her and i would recommend it. i know im late on this one. the only problem i had was.... how pyhton suppose to be this huge player and your woman driving a crown vic. i mean,really

like · see review

Feb 18, 2013 Letha rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

This book was awesome. It was like listening to a movie. I listened to the audiobook at work & can honestly say that I would recommend this book to any & every one. It even has a bit of mystery to it. De'nesha Diamond is a phenomenal drama writer.

like · see review

Jan 28, 2012 Alysia rated it 5 of 5 stars

At first I thought i couldn't get into this book because its based on gangs. Im really not into to the straight gang banging but once i got into it I just couldn't put it down. I love me some mama peaches this og lady who is just crazy as hell. The book was comedy!!

like · see review

Apr 02, 2012 Lakeshia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: african-american-urban

I'm gonna say it and I don't care what nobody thinks but this book was hella good. It some crazy, scary, laugh out loud moments. If you're looking for fast paced good story with some gangsta characters thrown in then read this book.

like 1 like · see review

Jan 14, 2013 Lisa G rated it 5 of 5 stars

Wow this book was so good. I loved the relationship between Ta'Shara and Profit. I so hated LeShelle and Python. I can't wait to read the next one to see what happens next.

like · see review

Nov 01, 2011 Jo Willis added it

Overall an O.K. urban-fic read... Some scenes were hard to read (and in the sequel, Street Divas, I deliberately skipped) -- i.e. sex w/pain scenes...

like · see review

Aug 14, 2011 Tameral Jones rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book was amazing. I couldn't put it down until I finished it off. The book is based on gangs on Memphis, Tennessee . I can't wait for the next book Street Divas to come out!!

like · see review

Jan 13, 2011 Laura Perry rated it 5 of 5 stars

Hustlin Divas was a good read. I'm not going to tell what the book is about cause I don't want to spoil the readers. I can't wait until part 2 come out in June.

like · see review

May 09, 2012 Jewlski rated it 4 of 5 stars

Really enjoyed this book. LOL. Im not sure why,but Python is a cool douche. I love him and hate him at the same time!

like · see review

Apr 10, 2012 Brandi marked it as to-read

I really want tu read this book cus im very interested in this book cus its wat I go through

like · see review

Apr 29, 2011 Danielle Reicks rated it 4 of 5 stars

Great book I will definitely read the follow-up due out in June. I am not a cusser, so there were a few too many F-bombs for me, but they didn't really interrupt the story and were definitely necessary for the theme of the book.

like · see review

Feb 21, 2013 Ranada rated it 5 of 5 stars

She did it again!! Love, drugs, betraya!!! #street life, I this series!!! Written with excellence!

like · see review

May 18, 2011 Cassondra rated it 4 of 5 stars

It was a good read, curious to read the next one. Cover doesn't do it justice.

like · see review

Oct 21, 2012 Sweets rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book was really good i hate the way it ended i cried some tears

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 21 22 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
urban fiction	1	12	Dec 21, 2010 09:13am

combine
Other Editions (9)

More editions...

Genres

Adventure

3 users

Cultural > African American

3 users

Fantasy > Urban Fantasy

2 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

The Golden Hustla
by Wahida Clark
Moth To A Flame
by Ashley Antoinette Snell
Raunchy
by T. Styles
Desperate Hoodwives
by Meesha Mink
Cartier Cartel
by Nisa Santiago

About De'nesha Diamond

National bestselling author De’nesha Diamond burst onto the scene as the co-author of the gritty Desperate Hoodwives tales. The Essence magazine recommended series has taken the street-lit game by storm and paved a brand new path for the edgy Memphis native. Understanding that there is a fine line between glorifying thug life and telling it like it is, De’nesha Diamond spins cautionary tales insp...more

More about De'nesha Diamond...

Books by De'nesha Diamond

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About Hustlin' Divas

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

title link	preview: Hustlin' Divas
avg rating	preview: Hustlin' Divas Goodreads rating: 4.39 (301 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8973766-hustlin-divas?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1348703697l/8973766.jpg[/img][/url] [url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8973766-hustlin-divas?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Hustlin' Divas by De'nesha Diamond[/url]

Hustlin' Divas (Divas Series #1)

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website